[blam]

"I've never heard the term used in California to describe anyone other than Romani Gypsies."

Same here in Alabama. My mother told me that Gypsies would steal babies when I was very young..

[dstarr]

I remember that some years back when I worked in retail, the word went out that these "Travelers" were going to probably be hitting soon. Everyone in the store was alerted to some of the scams they would likely try to pull. One of the scams could have been what was going on with Mrs. Toogood. I am just guessing but it could have been that the items she was trying to return for cash were actually shoplifted. She probably didn't have a receipt so naturally the store wouldn't give her cash. This is minor when considering the way she was hitting her daughter but it could also be another crime.

[luckodeirish]

That's funny, my mom told me that gypsies dropped me in a trash can and that is how she found me.